TRENTON -- State authorities claims a Bergen County hotel paid a female employee less than her male coworkers and then fired her for complaining about it, court documents show.

The state Division on Civil Rights claims in a complaint filed on Friday that the Hilton Homewood Suites hotel in Edgewater paid housekeeper Rosa Lopez less than several coworkers, including her own son, even after she received a promotion.

In a statement, state Attorney General Christopher Porrino said the findings of the division's investigation "suggest that the ownership and management of this hotel are caught in a time warp."

Messages left with a manager and the hotel's listed attorney were not returned Friday.

Authorities say Lopez was hired at the hotel in 2011 at a rate of $8 an hour. Later, they claim, the company hired another five housekeepers, all men, at rates between $9 and $10 an hour.

Lopez eventually received a 20-cent raise and in 2013 was offered a part-time position as a driver for the shuttle buses that carry guests between the hotel and New York City, according to the complaint. That position came with a bump in pay to $10 an hour, authorities claim, but Lopez only received the higher rate when she was driving the shuttle.

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Authorities say the woman's male coworkers who also split their duties between driving and housekeeping were paid the higher rate regardless of what job they were doing.

After Lopez claimed her complaints to supervisors went nowhere, she approached the owner of the hotel, Minesh Patel, who told the employee he would look into the situation, according to the complaint.

Instead, authorities claim, Lopez was fired.

A termination letter quoted in court documents told Lopez she was "competent" but that her "behavior is interfering with the positive performance and full engagement of the staff."

Hotel management told state investigators that the two men who were paid more were technically full-time drivers, even though they performed housekeeping duties when not on the road, according to the complaint. A manager also claimed Lopez was "disruptive" because she continuously asked other employees about their pay.

Craig T. Sashihara, the state's civil rights director, said under state law, "an employee cannot be fired for complaining in good faith that she is being discriminated against based on gender."

"Nor can an employee be fired for asking other employees about their salaries or benefits if the purpose is to explore the possibility that compensation discrimination is taking place," he added.

S.P. Sullivan may be reached at ssullivan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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